NY Department of Labor Decides Against “Call in Pay” Rules

Last year the New York Department of labor proposed enacting new “call in pay” rules. In order to cancel a shift, the proposed rules would have required an employer to provide employees with 72 hours advanced notice. If advanced notice was not provided, the employer would have had to pay the employee several hours pay, even though the employee did not work. There were a number of exceptions. The proposed rules were strongly opposed by businesses across the state. In a statement the DOL stated:

“At this time, due to the constraints of the regulatory process, the best course of action is to let this process expire and re-evaluate in the future, likely in concert with the Legislature, which would have a broader authority and better legal standing than Department of Labor regulations alone to balance the various needs of workers, businesses and industries.”

We devoted a significant amount of time speaking with both the Department of Labor and the NY legislature on this issue. While the rules may have had some applicability to those working in large “shifts,” they were not applicable for local stations. This is especially true for newsroom operations. By definition news is unpredictable. Despite the best meteorologists in the country, New York weather can be tough to forecast. A rule requiring broadcasters to provide 72 hours advance notice simply will not work.

We are gratified that the Department of labor has decided not to go forward with these rules. We will keep you informed if they re-surface at some point in the future.